Document Type : Original Research Paper

Authors

• Hesam Dehghani ¹
• Reza Nameni ²

¹ Hamedan University of Technology

² Hamedan University of Technlogy

Abstract

Drilling and blasting is the most common method for tunnel excavation in mines. A critical stage in this process is the cut design, which governs effective rock breakage, excavation advancement, tunnel wall quality, explosive consumption, and vibration levels. Although various blast cut patterns are widely used in tunnels, no unified study has systematically compared their performance under identical conditions. This paper presents a comparative numerical investigation of three common cut patterns—the four-section cut, the Canadian cut, and the modified Canadian cut—using FLAC3D. Key outputs including displacement, stress–strain response, plastic deformation zones, and Peak Particle Velocity (PPV) were analyzed. Results show that the modified Canadian cut minimizes displacement while achieving required fragmentation, whereas the Canadian cut performs better in controlling PPV. This study provides a quantitative, evidence-based framework for selecting the most suitable cut pattern for specific tunneling objectives.

Keywords

• Numerical Modeling
• Cut
• Tunneling
• FLAC3D

Main Subjects

• Drilling & Blasting